Am I the only person who doesn’t like the new Dexcom Clarity data visualizations? So far I’ve seen only very positive reviews, so I’m wondering if I’m just weird or maybe looking at things wrong.
My issues are:
Major issue: No overlay of multiple days’ trend lines without averaging or splitting into separate plots
Inconvenience: Dates have to be entered manually rather than scrolling through history
The averaging of trend lines or separation into separate graphs makes it very difficult to spot similar slopes on different days (very important for basal adjustments) and also creates confusion with food/bolus results since I don’t have very consistent eating habits or timing.
I’m really disappointed - does anyone know if the G5 phone app can be uploaded to the old Dexcom Studio software?
I agree! I don’t think Clarity gives near enough sufficient detail. Dexcom Studio is much better for details, and you can EXPORT the data to view in your own Visualizations. I use Qliktech Sense to view my exported data in various table views which can be sorted by BGs (avg, mean, sd, max bg, etc.), calculate A1c by selected time periods, etc. It is a pretty easy tool to use but it still takes time to review the data!
I have the following questions re: Clarity for any of you current users:
Does Clarity import ALL data from the G5, whether from the receiver or from the iPhone app. For example, if you are using both devices, will all data sync, and get uploaded??
Can you upload the G5 data (from iPhone and receiver) to Dexcom Studio?
Is there a way to EXPORT the data from Clarity?
Have any current users of G5 try this?
I just received my G5 transmitters but am waiting to do the upgrade of my G4 'til the current transmitter expires. I also do NOT use an iPhone so I am hoping that Dexcom will release an Android version soon!
Btw, I am a new member to this forum, but I have been perusing comments for a while now. I have found members’ comments to be so very helpful!! I learn more from this forum by far than anything from my HCP!
I’d love to see some examples of this data visualization software. Can you post some screenshots along with what data you consider helpful? I’ve found looking at my D-data as an effective way to move it in favorable direction. I know many people (often with eyes rolling) find this a mystery but it does work for me.
I don’t think there’s a way to export data from Clarity, at least I haven’t come across it since I started using it last month. I searched the Clarity User Guide for the term, export, and it came up empty. I don’t have the G5 system but @mikep, in another thread, said that both the receiver and iPhone can each upload separately to Clarity. I’m guessing that the data syncs up so that duplicates don’t show up twice.
My G5 transmitter is delayed until the late November so I’ll wait to discover some of these issues firsthand.
Hello. Yes, I use both the iPhone and the G5 receiver and both upload to Clarity. The difference is that with the receiver you have to manually upload the data using the Upload function of Clarity. Once you do this you will see 2 Devices listed at the bottom of the report. Clarity will combine the data to formulate its reports.
Sorry for the delay in responding. I export all data from Dexcom Studio and then import into Qlik Sense. Qlik Sense is a free app for non-commercial use and includes both desktop and cloud versions. I uploaded a couple of the screenshots below. The first one is for daily trends displaying all cgm readings for Oct 7. The next screen shot shows daily distribution. The third screen shot is weekly trends. Data can be drilled down by selecting from the dropdown listbox in the first screen shot for specific data such as month, etc., or by selecting any of the data in any of the reports. All table columns are sortable, so for example, if you are looking for best, Max BGs, sort on Max in the Success Report or Weekly Report. The Qlik Sense user can create their own reports fairly easily from the data. Mine are specific to what I’m interested in - Max, Min, Avg, A1c, etc. And I have not spent any time trying to beautify the reports, so please take these for what they are!
Note, I only included data from one day, Oct 7, but naturally, you can view ALL data from the Dexcom cgm as long as you upload it on a regular basis. I’m embarrassed to share my data as you’ll see that I struggle with LOWS. I’ve never posted any of my data before!
I tried calling Dexcom to see if the G5 (both iphone and receiver) data can be uploaded to Dexcom Studio but I am not able to get through to them. Customer support must be busy on this Columbus Day!
I’d be interested to learn from members that already have a G5 whether data can still be uploaded to Dexcom Studio. Thanks!
Your reports provide interesting and incredible detail. Your control is impressive. Can you provide any analysis examples based on this level of detail that translate in information you use to take action?
I use the 14-day standard day report in Clarity. It provides less granular detail than your tables and graphs but I’m easily able to decide what to do with the data. For example, my current report looks like this:
I can quickly see that from 5:30 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. I need to look at my basal rates from 3:30 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. and probably increase them. I also see that from about 7:00 p.m. to 11:45 p.m. I probably need to look at my insulin to carb ratios for my dinner and maybe even the 5:00 p.m. to 9:45 p.m. basal rates.
Since this is a 14-day period, it lends enough statistical weight to this info; it’s not just a single day aberration but a trend worth acting on. In other words, the average day from this period could use some insulin adjustment.
I like to look at the fine detail, too, but I think pulling back for a little longer view of things provides a more actionable picture. Just my sense of things.
Yes, those were just example screens of the details for a single day, and for me, sorting on individual fields is very helpful since my BGs are not very stable.
Thanks for posting your 14-day trends. I’m still not very good at recognizing trends and making actionable decisions based on the data, unfortunately. For instance, my glucose tends to go up for no apparent reason 3+ hours after dinner. I haven’t found a good solution yet other than to take an additional unit of insulin at 2+ hrs but that can be risky if for some reason my BG does NOT happen to go up.
I just got through to Dexcom. They said that there is currently no way to export data from Clarity. She also said that they will be discontinuing support to Dexcom Studio though she didn’t have a date for that. She also doesn’t think that Portrait is compatible with G5. So G5 at this point does NOT give the user access to their own data. Not too user-friendly…
Perhaps you could experiment with adding an extended bolus of say 1 or 2 units at mealtime over a 2-3 hour period. I find extended boluses to have a mild effect compared to taking a bolus all at once. I find the extended bolus more forgiving with much less possible drama. Since it is delivered over time it tends not to hammer you all at once when it start to gain traction.
If it turns out that you didn’t really need the extra insulin for that meal then you could easily treat the slowly trending low. Does that make any sense to you?
Too bad Dexcom doesn’t let us get “under the hood” with its Clarity data. I know that the NightScout project knows how to access all the raw data off of the Dexcom. You might check them out and see what you can learn.
Thanks, Terry. Yes, that is a good suggestion about the extended bolus. Yes, it makes sense. I will let you know how it works.
Yes, but maybe Clarity will support export of data in the near future, I hope:) I’ve heard of the NightScout project but have not looked into it before. I wonder if they will support the new G5? I will check out their site.
It also says:
“Like the previous products from Dexcom the new Dexcom G5® Mobile receiver will also be compatible for traditional uploads with diasend®.”
I haven’t tried it yet for the G5 but I do use it for the G4. This is good news. Diasend does support an export feature so hopefully, Dexcom G5 data can be exported to Excel:)
Diasend is also happy to announce that its new mobile app is now available. With the
diasend® Mobile app, patients can monitor their diabetes data, share their progress and
even upload glucose data on the go.
I suspect I’m late to notice this, but just wanted to let others know that one of my Clarity gripes has been resolved.
It’s now possible to view overlay plots by week! Thanks Dexcom!
In case anyone from Dexcom is reading this, though, there are still a few issues:
The different days on an overlay are almost the same color… the Studio colors are much easier to differentiate.
It’s still annoying to have to enter exact dates rather than scrolling.
Clarity is slow to load data since it pulls it from online - this is really annoying when I want to look at several different date ranges. Plotting from a local repository could resolve this problem.
with DEXCOM clarity I just made some tests and the biggest problem is … data eren’t private I think.
The cloud ist from Dexcom … and NO PERSONAL DATA … name and so on and also data … are available on your own computer!.
So myself when beeing in holidays far away for example in america or asia … where I don’t have internet-connection… it is absolutely impossible to read my own data or show it to a doctor what might be neccessary.
The earlier Dexcom Studio stored all the data on my own computer and NO other place…
hi Bradford1… NO I don’t know that. I only use the Dexcom programs as user of the Dexcom G4-system and have difficulties when the data aren’t on my personal computer.Here in Germany we have very hard rules for security of personal data. Gesendet: Montag, 19. September 2016 um 20:03 Uhr
September 19hi everyone … from GERMANY with DEXCOM clarity I just made some tests and the biggest problem is … data eren’t private I think. The cloud ist from Dexcom … and NO PERSONAL DATA … name and so on and also data … are available on your own computer!. So myself when beeing in holida…
Hi @wolfgang1, you raise some interesting questions about privacy and access to blood glucose data collected by Dexcom CGM. The data is uploaded and stored on Dexcom servers (“in the cloud”), but the access is username/password protected. Is that not considered sufficient by German privacy regulations? Of course, Dexcom still has access to your data on their servers according to their privacy policy, which I assume must also be in compliance with German regulations as otherwise you would not be able to use the system in Germany. So, what is the problem?
Regarding off-line access to your data, you may find it useful to just download your data to your computer. At the time when you have Internet access, you can login to Dexcom Clarity, and download your data to a spreadsheet on your own computer using the “Export” button on the Dexcom Clarity website.
